Tegami Bachi (or Letter Bees) are couriers that deliver important letters and packages throughout the land of eternal dusk, Amber Ground.

The story revolves around Lag Seeing, a young boy who was born on The Day of Flicker, 12 years ago when the man-made sun went down for unknown reasons. The manga follows his ambition to become a Letter Bee and how he follows the path of his idol Gauche Suede who suddenly went missing one day...

Previous review has given a sharp point of view on what this manga lacks a little bit. This series has been forgotten due to mangaka's slow (yes, very slow) progress with the chapters, although he has pumped up the pace for the later chapters.

WHAT I LOVED:

It draws a great point of view on characters' "HEARTS". I loved every one of the characters and how the characters were drawn, and every time I reread, I find something I didn't notice before. Also, the artwork is absolutely gorgeous; one of the best if someone were to ask me.

WHAT I HATED

The story kinda wrapped up out of nowhere. It felt like he was rushing (considering how the shounen story progresses over the main character growing up) as the later chapter just has the main character change over a year (without showing anything in the middle). Maybe if he drew a couple chapters more about it, it may have been better.

Overall, don't get around the plot *too* much, as it is not the strongest point of this manga. It has great artwork, and I would consider this series as one of the "mental healing" series.

With just one chapter left of this series, I think I've read enough to review this manga. This has been a disappointing series. Give how well the world of Tegami Bachi is built up, it was disheartening to see how the author simply gave up after volume 15 of trying to make sense of the plot.

The first 5-6 volumes of the manga are the usual "world-building" part of the series where the characters and how Amberground works. A mystery is introduced, a character goes missing, our main hero grows up by crying every 10 pages. The art is gorgeous and there are some moments of tenderness. From the 7-8th volume, the series goes into high gear and until volume 14-15, the series continues to ascend and the reader is drawn in. I read 6 volumes of the series in a single day. It was that good.

And from then on, the author gives up and decides to shit on the manga he is writing. And it's not just normal shit - it's of the disgusting kind. New characters are introduced (in volume 16 of a 20 volume manga!), characters start to behave erratically and the plot implodes. As of chapter 93, any semblance to whatever was the main plot has been abandoned and random fights are happening in the manga. It's a slow moving trainwreck and with just the last chapter remaining, I can't wait until I finish this series and assign is to the pile of rubbish manga that I've read.

Don't read this garbage. 3/10.

EDIT: Just read the last chapter. I stand by my earlier review. This manga is bad - don't waste your time.

For me, the very first chapter of this manga was like love at first sight. This is really a gem that deserves more recognition and I never thought that a story about postmen could be this good.

Perhaps I'm simple minded, but by far I have found every character to be enjoyable or/and interesting. Even though the protagonist is a crybaby I still like him.

The ambient of the story also impresses me. There's this sensation of adventure and discovery, but there's also a grey tone that make everything more thrilling and believable. But the thing that made this manga one of my favorites is that it is capable of delivering a certain degree of humanity, something that shonen usually lack of. This is actually something that even an adult could enjoy.

In general, this manga took me by surprise in a very good way. And it is one of those mangas that feels more like a graphic novel rather than a comic. I just hope for it to not let me down.

At first, I expected this series to be bland, but I extremely misjudged it. This series is one of my absolute favorites!

Okay, art. Very unique. I have never read a manga with art similar to this on. It's also very beautiful. The artist's character designs are gorgeous, each with their own distinguishable features that express their personality and differences from one another. Absolutely brilliant. The backgrounds and setting designs are magnificent. I applaud this mangaka's creativity and overall imagination.

The story, thus far, is brilliant. I doubt that there any mangas out there with similar features such as this series. It's a creatively drawn storyline that grips your interest, an absolute page-turner. It just keeps you at the edge of your seat, wanting more. Just from the first chapter, you can already sense the mangaka's skillful imagination, weaving a story unlike any other. The characters are perfect, causing the story to become even more brilliant.

It's very weird (a boy with a spirit bug in his eye, bullets made of "heart" and a girl with swords for hair to say the least) but very good. The illustrations are unique and have a neat ethereal, different feel to them but also a hard, bold edge that really appeals in a manga with some good action. The plot is also VERY intriguing, especially as the story progresses and you realize there's more to this world and it's postal system than appears. It's weird, funny, sad, and mysterious. My only real complaint is that the characters are the biggest cry babies that ever lived. Especially the main character who can't go a chapter without tears welling up whether it be for happiness, sadness, or relief, or whatever happens to be happening. And the names are a little strange. What kind of a name is Lag? Or Gauche (sounds like the paint i use for art class, lol, but the name grows on you)? And speaking of which, I kind of wish that Steak would just get eaten already (just kidding).

Yippie! Another good shounen manga!I love shounen series and always following most shounen mainstream manga, yet i dropped some of them. And recently it's rare to found good series, Thanks for someone who recommended this manga for me...I really like the artstyle... and the story also pretty good. The fantasy world inside this manga is so captivating. At last, i get back my top 5 shounen manga again!

I tried reading this manga a couple times, but couldn't get past the first chapter cause it starts off so slow. BUT, it looked good and I liked the art, so I kept it on my "to read" list.

I instead decided to start with the anime, and now I can't get enough. If the anime is anything like the manga, I will definitely be reading the manga soon. The main character, Lag, is a crybaby, but he is so cute, so I'm not really annoyed by it. There is definitely something brewing behind the scenes, which makes me believe the plot going to be good.

Update: I've caught up with the manga, and I love it! The anime is the same as the manga (up until the end, anyway), so I was also happy to see that.

The world that this is set in is far more interesting and unique than the characters, but all that travelling alone through epic twilit landscapes with silly names, and unexpected monster-attacks at any moment, sets the atmosphere so well that you overlook that while reading it. Only afterwards do you realise how many potentially powerful moments are ruined by overdramatic crying and sudden flashbacks in the middle of dangerous situaltions (even more in the anime). But this is probably just personal taste, most manga do this at times and a little kid would probably think it's really deep. Most of the characters look damn cool in a fairytale pretty-haired steampunk way, but after a while I started to get some of them mixed up. Very polished drawings with sharp shadows everywhere. It could be far greater than it is. A lot depends on whether the inevitable twists in the story or revelations about everyone's past are lame or genius though. Something tells me it will be one or the other